OF PRESENTATIONS IN THE ESP CLASSROOM
Carlos Aguilar and Maurice Ryan Box 17992 Al Ain, United Arab Emirates e-mail: [email protected]
Homepage Introduction
Assessment of
Oral Presentations Students'
Handout|
OF PRESENTATIONS IN THE ESP CLASSROOM Carlos Aguilar and Maurice Ryan Box 17992 Al Ain, United Arab Emirates e-mail: [email protected]
Homepage Introduction
Assessment of
Oral Presentations Students'
Handout |
|
|
Input Stage Processing Stage Output Eye Contact Body Language Delivery End of Talk and Questions The ability of students of science and technology to communicate orally in English is of crucial importance in today’s society. English is the international language of science and technology, business, and to a large extent, medicine. Arab undergraduates are expected to be able to communicate in English not only in reciprocal speech situations such as discussions and seminars but also formal speech situations such as delivering oral scientific reports and oral presentations on specified topics. Ghani (1989), for example, points out how students of science, technology , nursing, medicine and engineering at Kuwait University were required to take a special course in presenting papers in English as a necessary preparation for their future careers. Also here in the UAE University in Al Ain, students of engineering, agriculture and science have to deliver an oral presentation in English as part of their course work. AIMS OF PAPER A great deal has been has been written about the communications skills required in delivering oral presentations for business and industry (Trank and Steele 1983; McCroskey 1978). ESP researchers have drawn on many of the insights of this research when addressing the parallel question of preparing non-native speakers to give technical presentations in English (Ryan 1978). However, ESP literature regarding the specific needs of Arab speakers giving technical presentations is limited, and for this reason we intend in this paper to concentrate on the specific situation of university students in the Arab world who require skills in the delivery of scientific presentations. In addition to addressing the question of how to help them in the ESP classroom, we shall also discuss how to assess their oral performance in a way that provides them with meaningful feedback and reinforces the positive aspects of what they have achieved in giving the presentation. Let us now look at the first question of how we can help Arabic-speaking students to give effective oral presentations in English. In order to assist them, we need to have a clear understanding of the difficulties which they face in performing a complex linguistic activity of this kind. Expatriate ESP teachers often underestimate the difficulty which Arab university students have in giving an oral presentation in a foreign language such as English. The first problem which students face is having to research technical data using scientific books and periodicals written in a foreign language. In the UAE, for example, many students have had no experience of using the English language section of an academic library before coming to the university. Second, students often have difficulty in making notes in English and analyzing and synthesizing their information. Perhaps one reason for this is that at high school, many of them have been used to curricula and study methods which promote passivity by simply presenting them with facts. Therefore, they have not acquired the ability to think critically, analyze, evaluate, paraphrase and apply information, nor to present it coherently in their own words - essential skills if they are going to give an effective oral presentation using data they have gathered. This difficulty in processing and presenting their data is compounded by the fact that in many parts of the Arab world there is a strong tradition in which students memorize entire texts and recite them verbatim to a selected audience. As a result, when Arab students are asked to give an oral presentation in English, their automatic reaction is to memorize a passage from a book in English dealing with their topic. Instead of analyzing it and processing it in their own words, they simply recite it verbatim in class or read the text out loud. They regard this as a natural solution to their predicament. Therefore, given these problems particular to the Arab world, the challenge is how to promote the cognitive development of our students by helping them to bridge the gap between their traditional pedagogy and new curricula and teaching methods (Shurabi 1980, and Al Sheikh 1986). In the context of delivering oral presentations, they need help in analyzing data, organizing it, and presenting it in an effective way. At the same time, we need to respect the way they have been taught and utilize their existing skills such as the ability to memorize. In order to facilitate the task of assisting students to give effective oral presentations , it is useful to divide the entire process into a series of stages which can be completed according to set deadlines. The table below outlines four stages, each with its own behavioral objectives detailing exactly what the teacher and the students need to achieve during each stage. In this introductory stage, it is essential to give the students an overview of what is required in giving a scientific oral presentation, including collection and arrangement of data, delivery of the talk, use of visual aids, and assessment criteria. Setting deadlines for the completion of the various stages of the talk will help them to keep on schedule later on. The students will need assistance in choosing a suitable topic and deciding which aspects of it they intend to talk about. At this stage, an introductory visit to the library is helpful to give them an idea of where to find material and what sources of information are available including CD ROM's, encyclopedias, journals, INTERNET and E-Mail where appropriate. In some universities, students give oral presentations about term papers in English which they write as part of their course. In that case, the input stage will already have been completed when they wrote the paper. However, since students attending courses in the UAE University ESP Unit are not required to do this, they need assistance in gathering data from the library. This includes skimming scientific books and periodicals for material they feel is useful for their presentation. From the raw data the students have gathered, they need to choose the information they want to present, and then summarize it in note-form. The notes then need to be sorted into logical order under appropriate sub-headings. They often need guidance from the ESP teacher in selecting information that is relevant to the topic and not above or below their listeners’ level. A tendency for the students is to demand exhaustive instructions from the teacher while they themselves opt out of the decision-making. They often expect ESP instructors to tell them exactly what to do, whereas it is more beneficial for the teacher to maintain a non-authoritarian presence throughout the processing stage - to guide rather than direct (Chia-Jung Tsui, 1992). It the students’ responsibility to know what they are going to say and what visual aids they intend to use. As the students shape and re-shape their ideas, they may find it necessary to modify their sub-headings until they are satisfied that the information is in a note-outline form which the audience will easily follow and find interesting. They need to prepare an introduction, a main body consisting of the points they intend to cover, and a conclusion, making sure to select communicative language for each stage. For instance, students may find it helpful to write cues such as "the first thing I am going to talk about is......" in the introduction section of their outlines, phrases such as "first, second, third," etc. in the body of their talk, and "Finally.... - To sum up..... - In conclusion....." in the concluding section of their notes. When students are ready to give their presentations, it is useful for them to prepare their visual aids in advance and have them checked by the teacher. In general, high quality graphics help to gain and maintain the audience’s attention and increase the effectiveness of the talk (Wileman, 1980). In particular, with scientific presentations, graphs and diagrams are useful to summarize information and encourage questions (Schmid and Schmid, 1979). There are a number of important factors which need to be taken into consideration in the delivery of a technical oral presentation. Having checked that his/her visual aids are in position, the speaker is ready to start. There are two important things that presenters must keep in mind in the opening section of the talk: First, they must arouse their interest with a concise introduction which leads up to a statement of purpose. In a few sentences, they have to convince the audience that their talk is going to be worth listening to. Second, they need to win the audiences’ good will by creating a positive impression. First impressions are important. From the moment the student steps in front of the class they will be appraising his facial expression - whether he is smiling or frowning or looks relaxed. Once he starts speaking, the audience begins to evaluate his eye-contact, posture, body language, and the effectiveness of his delivery. Spinler (1991), for example, points out that only 7% of what the audience hears is the actual spoken words, while 38% of the message is conveyed through vocal tone and 55% is transmitted through non-verbal signals. Therefore, students should take into consideration the following points: Maintaining eye contact with the audience is the most critical component of effective delivery, particularly during the introduction. Doolitle, J. (1984), for example, points out that speakers should maintain eye-contact with the audience for 80% of the presentation. Therefore, speakers should not turn their back to their listeners while using the OHP, look at the ceiling, floor, or gaze out of the window. Also, they should not stare at any one person in the audience for a long time, or shift their eyes too quickly from one person to another. Instead, it is advisable to glance slowly around the room while speaking, looking briefly at each person. This creates a positive report with the listeners and helps them to feel part of the message. Body language also plays a part in the communicative effectiveness of a talk. It includes facial expressions, gestures and posture. Appropriate gestures such as pointing to the OHP can help communication, but they need to be appropriate and unobtrusive. Otherwise, they will distract the audience from what the presenter is saying. Posture is concerned with how speakers position their bodies, stand and hold their heads during a presentation. Good posture entails standing erect, looking relaxed but alert. Speakers should avoid slouching, sitting in the same position for too long or draping themselves over the OHP. Effective delivery involves speaking intelligibly with correct pronunciation and word stress. In order to be intelligible, students need to enunciate clearly, avoid speaking to fast or too slow, and speak loud enough for the audience to hear. Calnan and Barabas (1983) recommend a speaking rate of 100 to 200 words a minute for presenters of technical talks. Instead of reading their presentation aloud, students should refer to their note outlines and use discourse markers to indicate they are moving from one point to another. Back to Top Homepage
Introduction
Assessment
of Oral Presentations Students'
Handout |